Nom-de-Plume

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Nom-de-Plume is a British television drama series made and first broadcast by BBC Television in 1956.

Contents

Each episode tells a stand-alone story of a notable man or woman and has a length of thirty minutes. The common theme running through them all is that the name the main character is well known by, usually a pen name or stage name, is not revealed until near the end.

The series was created by Hector and Dorothy Crawford. [1]

Episodes

"The Man from the Sea"

Friday 18 May 1956 [2]
Written by Antony Brown [2]

Cast [2]

A Polish seaman called Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski turns himself into a writer in English, his fourth language.

"Portrait in a Mirror"

Friday 25 May 1956

Charles L. Dodgson is an Oxford mathematician and clergyman who has other ambitions.

"The Devil's Tattoo"

Friday 1 June 1956

"Child of Her Time"

Friday 8 June 1956 [3]
Written by Ian Dallas [3]

Cast [3]


Aurore Dupin de Francueil is a French girl with ambitions.

"The Innocent Gunman"

Friday 15 June 1956

Something happens in the life of Samuel L. Clemens.

"The Courtesan"

Friday 22 June 1956

Ludwig I of Bavaria takes a dancer called Eliza as a mistress, who soon has real power in the land.

"The Eye of the Morning"

Friday 29 June 1956

"The Nightmare Man"

Friday 6 July 1956 Edgar Allan Poe has dreams and nightmares.

"The Ten Strangers"

Friday 20 July 1956

"Legacy of Death"

Friday 27 July 1956

"Friend of the People"

Friday 3 August 1956

"The Man Who Made People"

Friday 10 August 1956 [4] Written by Robert Furnival [4]

Cast [4]

"A Rough Diamond"

Friday 17 August 1956 [5]
Written by Richard Wade [5]
Produced by Peter Lambert [5]
Designed by Gordon Roland [5]

Cast [5]

"The Man with a Hundred Hands"

Friday 24 August 1956

"Elephants Don't Disappear"

Friday 31 August 1956 [6]
Written by Ian Dallas [6]
Directed by Frank Dermody
Magical adviser Geoffrey Robinson
Designed by Norman James

Cast [6]

"The Counting-House Clerk"

Friday 7 September 1956 [7]
Written by Michael Voysey [7]
Produced by Lyon Todd [7]
Designed by Gordon Roland [7]

Cast [7]

"The Free Air"

Friday 14 September 1956 [1]
Written by Elwyn Jones [1] Produced by Peter Lambert [1]
Designed by Douglas Smith [1]

Cast [1]

A young Frenchman called François-Marie Arouet has an adventure.

"Well, He Was a Success"

Friday 21 September 1956 This story begins in London in 1929 and ends in Hollywood three years later.

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Nom-De-Plume: 17: The Free Air", bbc.co.uk, accessed 25 September 2025
  2. 1 2 3 "Nom-De-Plume: 1: The Man from the Sea", bbc.co.uk, accessed 25 September 2025
  3. 1 2 3 "Nom-De-Plume: No. 4: Child of her Time", bbc.co.uk, accessed 25 September 2025
  4. 1 2 3 "Nom-De-Plume: 12: The Man Who Made People", bbc.co.uk, accessed 25 September 2025
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "Nom-De-Plume: 13: A Rough Diamond", bbc.co.uk, accessed 25 September 2025
  6. 1 2 3 "Nom-De-Plume: 15: Elephants Don't Disappear", bbc.co.uk, accessed 25 September 2025
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Nom-De-Plume: 16: The Counting-House Clerk, bbc.co.uk, accessed 25 September 2025